The saga surrounding tech entrepreneur Do Kwon has taken a dramatic turn as South Korean regulators push for his extradition to face charges in his home country. If convicted, Kwon could face a staggering 40-year prison sentence, highlighting the severity of the allegations against him.
In an impassioned plea for justice, the South Korean prosecutor spearheading the investigation into crypto mogul Do Kwon has argued that extraditing him to his home country is the most effective means of securing retribution for the victims of the TerraUSD cryptocurrency collapse. This disastrous event erased a staggering $40 billion from the digital currency markets.
South Korean authorities are currently locked in a tug-of-war with their US counterparts over Kwon’s extradition from Montenegro, where he has been detained since March. Kwon, a South Korean citizen, is the co-founder of Terraform Labs – the company responsible for the ill-fated TerraUSD and Luna cryptocurrencies. South Korea aims to prosecute Kwon for his alleged involvement in these failed ventures.
As reported by the Wall Street Journal on May 5, Dan Sung-han, director of the Seoul Southern District Prosecutor’s Office, asserts that Terra co-founder Do Kwon should be extradited to South Korea instead of the United States. Sung-han maintains that the bulk of the evidence and Terra affiliates are situated in South Korea, making local prosecutors optimally equipped to handle court proceedings.
The South Korean prosecutor has recognized that the Terra-LUNA debacle played a pivotal role in expediting conversations around the necessity for more stringent regulation within the cryptocurrency sector.
At present, both South Korea and the United States are pursuing the extradition of Do Kwon from Montenegro. Kwon was apprehended in March by law enforcement and charged with using counterfeit passports and documents in an attempt to board a Dubai-bound flight.
Do Kwon May Face 40-Year Sentence
If Do Kwon is found guilty, he is poised to face the harshest sentence for a financial crime in South Korea’s history, surpassing an astounding 40 years behind bars.
On March 29, Montenegro’s Minister of Justice, Marko Kovac, declared that the decision regarding extradition would be made in a separate court proceeding following the resolution of the passport forgery case. The extradition is contingent on various factors, such as the gravity of the crimes, location where the offenses were committed, order of requests, and the accused’s nationality.
South Korean prosecutors made a second attempt to secure an arrest warrant against co-founder Daniel Shin. However, the court dismissed the request, citing no apparent risk of flight or evidence tampering. The Prosecutor’s Office has indicted Terra co-founder Daniel Shin and seven others without detention on multiple charges, including fraud, breach of duty, and embezzlement. South Korean authorities are closely monitoring Terra transactions and have disclosed that Do Kwon still possesses millions of dollars’ worth of Bitcoin in a Swiss bank.
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